North Jersey Jewish community reacts to Israeli invasion of Gaza

As Israel's invasion of Gaza continued for the second day and fighting intensified, Jews across Bergen County steeled themselves for a potentially prolonged battle that many described as unfortunate but necessary.

At the Chabad Lubavitch Jewish Center of Northwest Bergen County in Franklin Lakes, Rabbi Chanoch Kaplan said he is encouraging members of his congregation to continue donating money to support efforts by the Jewish Federation of Bergen County and groups associated with the Chabad Jewish movement to buy food and medical supplies, and to provide social services in affected parts of Israel.

"Obviously no one wants the situation to escalate. Israelis don't want a war," Kaplan said. "Israel is trying to protect their own civilians and Palestinian civilians, but Hamas is trying to kill civilians on both sides. If there are deaths, they are the fault of Hamas."

Many Palestinians here view the situation in Gaza as an Israeli occupation, and argue that Israel is depriving Palestinians of political rights and economic opportunities by blockading the border of Gaza. Hundreds of Palestinian families and students held a rally in the streets of Paterson Friday, where they chanted "free Palestine."

Jewish residents in Bergen County responded that Israel pulled its military forces out of Gaza in 2005, and that continued poverty and poor municipal services in Gaza have more to do with groups like Hamas taking international aid meant for development and diverting it to purchase weapons and construct tunnels under the border.

"Hamas has taken the entire Gaza Strip hostage," Kaplan said. "Rather than put that money into helping citizens, they have spent millions if not billions on amassing rockets and building tunnels which have one single purpose: to kill Israelis."

"There is no occupation," said James Shames, CEO of the federation. "There is not one Jew or Israeli living in the Gaza Strip. How much concrete was used to build these tunnels? What would have happened if they used all that international aid to build some sort of civil society in Gaza, as opposed to building a war chest?"

Temple Emeth in Teaneck recently hosted a delegation from Israel to discuss the escalating violence in Israel and Gaza, and to solicit donations for emergency aid, the temple's rabbi, Steven Sirbu, said. The following day, four boys who were playing on a beach in Gaza were killed by an Israeli airstrike. Almost immediately, photos of the boys were shared by news organizations around the globe.

Regret over death

Many Jewish leaders, congregants and non-practicing Jews in Bergen County expressed regret about the boys' deaths, and similar tragedies.

But they said they stood by the bombing and the invasion, describing both as necessary to destroy Palestinian militant groups and the networks that keep their organizations operational.

"Whenever a child is killed in a war, it's tragic. It was heartbreaking to see that family on the beach," Sirbu said. "But Israel expressed regret for that. And it is necessary to dismantle Hamas and protect Israeli civilians."

In the weeks leading up to the invasion, the Jewish Federation of Northern New Jersey set a goal to raise $200,000 to support programs that bring food and improvements to bomb shelters to people affected by rockets fired into Israel, Shames said.

The group reached its goal just as the invasion began, Shames said, part of an effort by federation chapters around the country to raise $10 million.

As donations continue to pour in, Shames said the local federation is planning its next round of charitable work.

"We're going to wait and see what goes on over the weekend and decide on Monday what to do in terms of events or fund drives. We're going to keep going until the conflict is over," Shames said. "We mourn the loss of innocent lives on both sides.

But if Hamas didn't start this, there would be zero deaths on either side. In our mind, Hamas is 100 percent responsible for this."

One donor to the effort is Irit Lerner, owner of Irit Barbershop in downtown Fair Lawn. As she shaved the back of 7-year-old Daniel Lifshitz's head, Lerner said her concern for Israel's long-term security outweighed her concerns about the loss of life.

"It's very hard for the children, both Palestinian and Israeli. It's a mess," said Lerner, 39. "But I think they should do it. They should clean up all the weapons in Gaza."

Daniel's father, Yevgeny Lifshitz, sat and watched the haircut from a chair behind his son in the cramped barbershop. He had returned on Friday from a monthlong trip to Israel to visit family members who live 40 kilometers from the Gaza border, he said. At least once a day, the family heard sirens and went running for the nearest bomb shelter.

"I'm worried because more people will die," Lifshitz said, rubbing his son's head as Daniel climbed down from the barber chair. "But there's no other choice. Diplomatic means aren't working. The invasion is the only way to destroy the tunnels and stop the rockets."